I just bought this camera and have not used it a lot yet but was very happy with it, so much so, that I wrote a review before I fully explored everything this camera was capable of. From my experience so far I am extremely impressed at the quality of the pictures and the cost per megapixel, seeing that you are getting a Leica lens with this camera.....and I am amazed that the Lumix line is not more popular than it is. I upgraded to this camera from a Canon Elph because of a number of things. First was the fact that this is the only camera name in the market with the best lens(Leica) in the world. Everything else(ie. all of the bells and whistles) are secondary to the quality of a camera lens, since this is what ultimately affects a pictures quality. I have taken several pictures of mundane things such as the side of a building just to test out the clarity of the picture and the richness of the colors. What would have been over or underexposed with my Elph much of the time comes in incredibly well with this camera.

This camera also is instant on and is ready to snap when you push the button down. People who have had other cameras know this is not always the case. Controls and user interface are also very intuitive. You will not spend much time, if any, with your nose in the manual. And it is **very small**.....I had no idea it would be as small as it is. One thing to note is the battery types that can be used; this camera only accepts alkaline and Ni-Mh, so don't try NiCd or any other type of batteries. This was another reason for my upgrade as I often travel to remote places where recharging a battery is possible. AA batteries are available in any corner of the world.

So far, I am extremely pleased with the quality of the pictures and the many functions the camera has, most of which I have not even tried, such as the animation mode. Perhaps I will update this review as I learn what this camera is truly capable of.
All in all, I think one cannot go wrong with this camera. The cost per megapixel is astounding; there are lesser cameras costing much more. One more thing: transfer time with the cable is speedy....I am rethinking how necessary a card reader really is. The Lumix line has made a convert out of me.

Edit: I have uploaded some pictures taken with the LC-80, and wanted to add some comments on the design of the camera.....it is a brilliant design. One of the small things(which is not so small to me) is the fact that when you move the lever to zoom in, the lens stops and pauses when it reaches the end of the optical zoom(3X), before it continues zooming on to a maximum of 9X through the digital zoom. This is basically the camera asking the user: "are you sure you want to proceed and risk image degradation with the digital zoom?" Just a brilliant design.

The one downside I could see with this package would be the software. It comes with Ulead software which does virtually everything you could want it to(even adds sound to pictures if you want), but one thing it does not do(at least Ihave not found it), is to make a panorama out of multiple pictures. This was included with the Elph, and is something I will continue to use in the future. This is **Very minor** though when looking at the whole package, which is fantastic.